


Paths of Power: Awakening

by Engineer_Gameplay



Category: Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime), Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Gen, Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan Manga Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-13 04:22:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29520810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Engineer_Gameplay/pseuds/Engineer_Gameplay
Summary: Natsuki Subaru was a seemingly normal guy, even after being transported to another world. But after an encounter with a mysterious figure, everything begins to change. Subaru's only way to find answers to keep moving and to unravel the secrets of both this new world and his family's past. But he will show that he can arise, and be a symbol. A symbol of freedom
Relationships: Natsuki Subaru & Rem
Comments: 9
Kudos: 32





	1. Beginning of the End

“Mooooooooooom.” A five year old Subaru pleaded. “Can you tell me a bedtime story?”

“Oh Subaru, it's almost time for bed though.” Naoko said as she tucked him into bed. 

Subaru pouted at this. “But Mom, I’m not tired yet, just one?” Subaru activated his ultimate technique, the puppy eyes. “Pleeeease.” 

Naoko sighed with a fond smile on her face, “Fine, you win,” She said as she sat on the edge of his bed and ruffled Subaru’s hair. “Just one though.”

“Yay! Bedtime stories with Mom are the best!” The young Subaru cheered.

“Shhhhhhhhh, you don’t want Dad to hear that, he’ll be very jealous,” She whispered with a smile on her face. “Now, this story is about our ancestors from long ago, on a faraway island. They hag big walls to keep out the big bad monsters, these people wer-”

“Big and scary monsters?” Subaru asked in a fearful voice, hiding under his blanket as he shook, imagining them in the shadows.

Naoko chuckled as she brought him out from under the blanket, “Subaru, it’s rude to interrupt people, but yes, they were big and scary monsters. Bigger than our house!”

This comment made Subaru’s eyes go wide as saucers. He looked at the window in fear, imagining a giant looking in on them. “Will they come to scare us?” He asked, his voice shaking.

“No sweetie, your great-great-great-great grandfather got them all to go away, so that they couldn’t scare anyone else.” She said in a reassuring tone as he began to emerge from the blanket once more. 

“What was he like mom?” Subaru asked, an innocent look on his face.

Naoko looked up, and for a split second, it looked as if her eyes had flashed white, “He was a warrior, who only wanted for his people to be safe. He was brash on the outside, but was kind and caring on the inside.” She said, looking back down at Subaru. “He was willing to give anything to save his people, and because of him, they were finally able to live in peace.”

“Wow!” Subaru looked up at his mom with stars in his eyes, “What was his name?”

Naoko smiled at Subaru, “I’ll tell you, but first, go brush your teeth!” She said while stretching her arms out to him, wiggling her fingers. “Or the tickle monster will get you!” 

“Mom?!” Subaru exclaimed, running to the bathroom to escape the dreaded round of tickling.

When Subaru returned, he saw his mom looking at his bed, a forlorn look on her face. Her eyes looked as if they had white stripes, but they vanished when she looked at him and smiled, her pained expression gone. 

“Brush your teeth well sweetie?” Naoko smiled. 

Subaru gave an excited noise of confirmation as he jumped in bed, eager to hear the name of this ancient hero. “Story time! Story time! Story time!” 

“Now calm down Subaru.” His mother said as she lightly pushed him down into bed. “The name of this great warrior…” As she put her hand on Subaru’s forehead, her eyes flashed white again. “ … was Ere-”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subaru jumped awake as he heard a loud crash outside his window. He opened the curtains to see that it was just one of Crusch’s men dropping a box of supplies. Subaru groaned before beginning to prepare for the day. They were soon to set out to Flugel’s Tree, to confront the White Whale. 

Subaru rubbed his eye in a vain attempt to wipe away his exhaustion. ‘Just what was that dream, I don’t remember that ever happening.’ He sighed. ‘Whatever, it was probably just a meaningless dream.’ 

Subaru finished his morning stretches and donned his tracksuit before heading down to the main hall where everyone was meeting up. He was hoping to be one of the first ones there, but alas, most of the residents were early risers. He saw Crusch, Wilhelm, Felix, and a few others crowded around what seemed to be a map. The warriors were either resting or checking their equipment. 

“Good morning Subaru-kun!” Said a cheery and energetic voice behind him.

Subaru turned to greet Rem, but instead saw a short blue-eyed female with piercing blue eyes and shoulder-length blonde hair. He looked in confusion, as he had no idea who she was, but then he blinked and there was Rem, with a tilted head and looking at him in concern.

“Are you alright Subaru-kun, you looked confused there for a second.” Rem worriedly stated.

Shaking off the weirdness of that vision, he smiled. “Everything’s perfectly fine Rem, may I ask how you are doing this fine morning.”

“I’m doing as fine as I can with all things considered.” Rem said while looking around the hall. “I just can’t believe we’re actually going through with this.”

Subaru looked around the hall at all the preparation being done. “Yeah me neither, but everything’s going to be ok! Natsuki Subaru the Great is here to protect you!” He exclaimed with his extravagant pose.

Rem giggled. “Well thank you, my knight in shining armor.”

They both shared a laugh at this. Although on the inside, Subaru was still questioning that illusion. ‘I have never seen anyone that looks like that and yet… I can’t help but feel that I recognized her.’ Pushing those thoughts aside, he struck up a conversation with a demihuman named Ricardo, who was the head of Anastasia’s mercenary team, while more soldiers were filing in. After Ricardo left to speak with his boss, Crusch came over, and Subaru told her about the plan to use him as bait, as mabeasts were attracted to him. ‘I just wish the only way to bait them wasn’t to risk having my heart crushed.’ He thought as he bid goodbye to Crusch.

After Crusch gave an awe-inspiring speech, everyone began to head out. The time the White Whale was set to arrive was after dark, but nonetheless, Crusch wanted to arrive plenty early, so that equipment could be checked, and defences could be set. During this, Rem and Subaru were relaxing by the base of the tree, preparing for the conflict to come.

“Whoooooaa.” Subaru said in awe looking up at Flugel’s Tree. He was sitting on his butt and had his legs sticking out in front of him as he gazed up at the gargantuan tree. 

Rem gave a small smile at his reaction. “It’s incredible isn’t it, it really is one of a kind.” She said with slight wonder in her own voice.

Subaru jumped up. “Exactly! This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, let's check it out together!” Subaru exclaimed, grabbing Rem’s hand and pulling her along with him to the tree.

“Subaru-kun!” Rem exclaimed in shock, and slight embarrassment. “What are you doing!”

Subaru gave her a mischievous smile. “I just want to spend some nice time at this beautiful landmark, with my most demonically inspired friend of course!” Once they reached the tree, Subaru released Rem’s hand (to her disappointment) and saw something peculiar. “Hey Rem, I think some people carved their names into the tree over here!” 

Rem looked at the marks in the tree with a confused look on her face. “But why would someone do that to the tree, do they want to hurt it?” 

Subaru chuckled. “No silly, they carve them in with someone else to show that they will forever be connected.” Subaru teased with a light and jolly tone. “Speaking of which, do you have a knife I could borrow?” 

Confused, Rem handed him one she had on her, (Subaru was deeply concerned, like where did she pull that out of) and Rem’s expression turned to one of shock as he stabbed the knife into the tree, and began to carve something out. “Subaru-kun! What are you doing!”

“Well I said that carving two names together in a tree symbolizes an everlasting bond right?” Rem nodded, still confused. “Well, I just wanted to make sure that our bond would never be forgotten!” Rem’s expression became full of warmth and happiness upon seeing the words SUBARU + REM carved into the tree. 

Rem started to laugh. “Y-you really are the silliest Subaru-kun.” 

They both laughed, and for a moment the world seemed to fade away, leaving behind all worries and stress, and the only thing that remained was this one moment of happiness. Sadly, it was not meant to last. A beep sounded from Subaru’s phone, and it was then that the moment was broken. 

“We have about twenty minutes before the Whale gets here, we should get ready.” Subaru said with a serious tone.

Rem nodded. “Right.” 

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Any second now, Subaru’s phone would ring, and the battle would start. Soldiers waited with bated breath, scanning the area for any sign of the White Whale. Suddenly, a chime rang out, and with it, they knew it was time. One of the greatest battles of history was about to be fought and there was no guarantee of survival.

“WROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAA”

The sudden roar had fear rippling through the hearts of everyone present as they looked up and saw a giant shadow covering the moon. The shadow swept above them and they soon saw the clear figure of the White Whale. Its massive body, covered in white leathery skin, combined with its elegant horn and rage-filled eyes, struck terror into the hearts of those present. 

Subaru was the only one unaffected by this horrifying visage, as he looked at the beast with nothing but hate. About to signal Rem to charge, and as he looked the beast dead in the eyes, he made a vow. 

‘No matter how many times I die, I will keep moving forward, until all of my enemies are destroyed.’

And with that vow forever made in his mind, he shouted out to the frightened troops, with the words coming out as if he had said them before. “Your objective is right in front of you! Take down the White Whale, don’t let anyone else die in vain!” His cry cut right through their fear, and with courage in their hearts, they began the charge. 

The Battle at Flugel Tree had just begun.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flashes of magic flew over their heads as the small army charged the White Whale. The close combat warriors took jumps to land blows on the ancient mabeast, while constantly dodging away from the whale’s lethal attacks. With the light of the artificial sun, the whale had nowhere to hide and was getting slaughtered.

Subaru couldn’t believe his eyes. They were doing it! They would be able to save Emilia and the others! However, nothing good will ever last. Upon Wilhelm ripping out the White Whale’s eye, it let out an earth-shattering roar, and with it a disguising cloud of fog. Warriors were getting killed left and right. Wilhelm was knocked out when the whale smacked him into the ground with its tail. Crusch barely had the strength to stand. Patrasche was beginning to foam at the mouth, and Rem couldn’t even lift her Morningstar. Subaru saw this and began to race back to the base of the tree, before he heard Rem’s cry.

“Subaru-kun, watch out!”

Before Subaru could react, he was thrown up into the air and impacted the ground harshly.

‘Uhh, what was that?’ Subaru questioned drearily as he turned around, only to be filled with horror at what he saw. Where Patrasche once stood was just a ditch in the dirt, with the tattered remains of her saddle drenched in blood. ‘Wait, where’s Rem?!’ He frantically scanned the area, before seeing Rem crumpled in a heap about five meters away. He saw a large cut along her leg but he saw her struggle to stand, relief filled him as he knew she was alive, he looked around to see Ricardo rushing at them with a look of terror in his eyes. Subaru was wondering why he looked so terrified, but then he heard a sound that made him freeze in dread. 

“WROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAA”

Subaru whipped around to see one of the White Whales bearing down on him and Rem. Time seemed to slow. He saw Ricardo, with desperation and fear filling his eyes as he tore towards them, as if he already knew he wouldn't make it in time. He saw Rem, paralyzed with fear and still unable to attack. He saw the White Whale, with nothing but malice filling its remaining bloodshot eye. Upon seeing this, Subaru knew what he had to do. Gathering the last of his remaining strength, he sprinted towards Rem with the White Whale close behind him. 

‘Even if I die… ’ He thought while racing towards Rem. ‘… even if I tear myself apart …’ He grabbed Rem. ‘… I will …’ Rem looked up at him, tears filling her beautiful blue eyes. ‘… protect her!’ With the White Whale looming over him, he threw Rem to Ricardo, and in that moment through tears in her eyes and fear in her heart, Rem saw Subaru with a smile on his face and hand outstretched. And with the jaws of death itself closing upon him, Subaru issued to Rem one final message. 

“Fight.”

The whale bit down, severing Subaru’s hand, and covering Rem in his blood as she screamed a silent scream in loss. Ricardo grabbed Rem around her waist and began to turn back towards the tree as his eyes filled with tears at the loss of another comrade. His final thought looking back upon the whale was,

‘Natsuki Subaru, you were truly a warrior among warriors … may you rest in peace.’

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After Ricardo dropped Rem off with the rest of the wounded as he went back out to fight. Rem just simply sat where Ricardo put her, numbness filling her as she sat, repeating the same phrase over and over again.

‘I failed I failed I failedIfailedIfailedIFAILED’

She knew she was useless, the one man that convinced her otherwise, the man she loved, a Hero, had died because she failed.

Her once vibrant eyes, full of life and joy, have faded into a light, hazy blue. With the dried tear-tracks on her face, and the blood and gore covering her, she looked as if she was dead. An empty shell of a once proud warrior. But as she watched the White Whale slaughter more warriors, something began to flicker in the depths of her soul. As she heard their anguished cries and saw their gruesome demises, that flicker began to grow. As she looked around and saw the haunted and defeated soldiers around her, a fire was growing in her empty shell. At one point or another Felix came around and healed her leg, but that went unnoticed by the blue-haired Oni. As she saw the White Whale, she was reminded of her saviors final message, 

“Fight.”

This one word set Rem’s soul ablaze with life as she began to rise up. The memories they had together would never be forgotten, and she felt something deep within her stir. An unstoppable force, an endless flood of emotion that got Rem to stand in defiance. As she picked up her Morningstar, the emotion that she had been holding back released. Pure rage coursed through her veins as her horn slowly emerged from her forehead, if she looked like a corpse before, now she resembled a true devil, a beast of destruction, hellbent to its purpose. But, as she was about to charge, something happened.

A flash of light lit up the sky.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few minutes before… 

“Crusch-sama.” At this, a beautiful warrior with flowing green hair turned to address the uncharacteristically quiet cat-boy. 

Crusch Karsten, one of the five royal candidates, and the leader of this operation immediately picked up on his odd attitude. “Felix, what’s wrong?” She asked out of concern for her knight. But as she saw the somber look on his face, she quickly came to a conclusion. Bracing for the worst, she asked, “Who did we lose?”

He responded in a quiet tone. “When I was healing the wounded, I saw Rem alone, covered in blood, muttering to herself about failing, upon observation, it would seem like Natsuki Subaru had died.”

This shocked Crusch to her core. Despite being physically weak, Subaru has been shown to be incredibly smart in these scenarios, and him being a casualty never even occurred to her. “I-I see, and how is Rem?” She asked, trying to change the topic.

“Physically, she’s fine but mentally,” He sighed. “Frankly I don’t see her recovering from this anytime soon.”

“You know, Felix-dono, the people you find in the greatest depths of despair are always the ones to surprise you.” Said a gruff and fatherly voice.

Both Crusch and Felix turned around to see Wilhelm van Astrea, also known as the Sword Devil. The man was looking onto the still raging battlefield with a faraway look in his eyes. He grunted as he held his side, which was covered in bandages along with his head. However, before they could question his sudden appearance,

A flash of light lit up the sky.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few minutes before…

Subaru gasped as he sat up and clutched at the stump of his arm, only to find that his arm was perfectly fine? ‘Did I reset?’ He thought in shock before noticing where he was, his eyes quickly began scanning this new area. It seems that he was in a desert that had no end in sight, but he saw a river, of seemingly white energy flowing through the desert. Looking around, he saw multitudes of other rivers leading to a central point off in the distance. Deciding that this might be the way out of this place, he began to follow it while taking in more of the environment. The sky above his head was pitch-black, a void that seemed to be endless. The sands seemed to glow white, as if they were covered in non-existant moonlight. As he thought of the others, likely still fighting the White Whale, he began to increase his pace. As he approached the central point of the rivers, he found a tree, seemingly formed out of the same white energy as the rivers. When he got closer, he saw a figure sitting by the base of the tree. The figure seemed to be a young man, not much older than Subaru himself, he had long, black hair and his face was shadowed from view. 

“Hey dude, do you know where the hell we are?” Subaru yelled out at the figure in desperation. Seeing no response, he shouted again. “Hey pal, did you hear me, I’m wonderin-” Subaru never finished this sentence as a voice that seemed to come from the land itself began to speak.

“NATSUKI SUBARU”

Subaru immediately whipped around looking for the source of the voice, before turning back to the figure from before.

“I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU”

As this was said, the mysterious figure lifted their head. As amber eyes met green, the final message was spoken.

“I HAVE CHOSEN YOU TO BE MY SUCCESSOR”

Before Subaru could question what that meant, he was suddenly filled with white-hot agony. His body felt like it was burning from the inside out, his bones were liquefying, his skin was melting, and his blood was boiling. Before he lost consciousness, he heard one last thing.

“Remember your oath, Natsuki Subaru. You must protect them.”

And with that he lost consciousness, and then,

A flash of light lit up the sky.


	2. Clash of the Titans

Seemingly from the heavens, lightning ripped through the sky, and converged on the White Whale with a roaring explosion. The body of the whale arched, and bulged, before plunging down to earth.

All across the battlefield, soldiers covered their eyes as the light momentarily blinded them. When the light faded, the human forces watched with wide eyes as one of the White Whales fell to the ground in a thundering crash. Shock soon turned to joy as they assumed that someone with great power had come to help. Crusch watched this sequence dumbfounded that the mabeast that had terrorized the world for hundreds of years was brought down by a simple strike of lightning. Wilhelm watched with suspicion of the lightning that seemingly appeared from nowhere. He had never heard of lightning magic or anything of the sort. Rem witnessed this, her bloodlust temporarily satiated as she looked on with confusion strewn across her face. However she quickly locked sight on the other White Whales, who were using this distraction to try and attack. But before Rem could begin her attack, an aura of immense power came from the corpse of the White Whale. 

This immediately had everyone back on guard as they spun around in growing horror. Sure enough, right before their eyes, the whale was moving. But to say it was moving would be inaccurate, as from the way it palpated and bulged, it soon became obvious that something was trying to escape. 

Crusch was beginning to draw her sword, ready to defeat whatever amalgamation emerged from the massive corpse. She had fully depleted her strength, and nearly collapsed from that simple act. She gritted her teeth as she saw her troops around her. She would not fail them, even if she had to sacrifice everything to win. 

Wilhelm watched the Whale with an intense gaze. He knew that if they were to face another ultra-powerful mabeast in this condition, they would be slaughtered. This filled him with nothing but despair, despair that his wife would go unavenged. However, no matter the odds, he would never submit. He still had many things left to do in this world, and in that moment he remembered his grandson, who he had blamed for his wife’s death all those years ago. He looked up with a look of sheer determination. He would get his chance to apologize, and make everything right. This he swore to.

Felix knew that he wasn’t a fighter. As a healer, he knew that he would have no chance against any beast that emerged from the Whale. So, he gritted his teeth and bit down the feel of nausea as he ran back to the wounded. If he could help his lady by bringing more warriors back into the fight, then he would do that until his last breath. He was a healer dammit, and he would fulfill his duty to the end. 

Rem glared at the twitching body with a gaze of steeled determination. As others grew fearful, Rem became calm. ‘Living is like a miracle…’ She thought of her dark-haired savior. ‘… and the only way to live in this cruel world…’ Her eyes burned with rage and grief. ‘...is to FIGHT!’ She got into a battle stance, morningstar at her side as she slowly began to walk forward with her face shadowed, aura flaring around her. 

But before she could continue, the stomach bulged, and something erupted from the corpse. Through the fog and steam, a massive silhouette was seen, amber eyes blazing. With a massive roar, the fog cleared, and terror spread like waves throughout the army. 

The figure was colossal, 15 meters of pure muscle. Spots of molten gold looked out from narrow eyes set in an angular face. Its inky-black hair was of short length and was pushed back, matted by the blood of the whale. Its fingers, near talon-like in appearance, were curled up into fists at its side. Steam escaped from its lipless jaws as its mouth stretched into what could only be described as a grimace, as its too large upturned mouth was forced down into a gruesome visage. Its skin, a fair tan, was covered in countless scars. There seemed to be spider-web cracks spread throughout its entire body, a series of horizontal lines across its toned abdomen, mottled bruising covering its entire torso, and a jagged line encircling its upper left bicep, as if the entire arm had been ripped off at some point. The creature reared its head back, and released a thundering war-cry that made those nearby clutch their ears in agony.

This shocked the troops out of their temporary paralysis as they grouped up, and prepared for another engagement. However, to their immense shock, the creature began to dash at astounding speed at one of the White Whales. Its footsteps shook the ground as it ran at its target, face set in a look of rage as it let out a guttural bellow. The Whale turned away from its current adversary to meet this new threat.

Fog began to collect in the whale's mouth as it prepared its attack, and despite seeing this, the rogue giant continued on gaining speed. Right as the whale fired its attack, the humanoid giant dodged to left with surprising agility, however, to the disgust of those watching, its arm was sheared off in the attack. Blood and viscera exploded out of the wound, where fragmented pieces of bone still protruded. But suddenly, a burst of steam erupted from the wound as the arm regenerated; bone, muscle, and skin appearing from seemingly thin air. It was also noted by those with enhanced eyesight that the beast seemed to avoid humans whenever possible. 

Wilhelm was one of these people. He leaned over and whispered something to Crusch, which made her look at him in confusion, which slowly turned to understanding as he continued to speak in a lowered tone. 

“Soldiers! Regroup at the base of the tree!” Crusch’s voice boomed across the plains. Everyone looked at her in shock, before looking fearfully at the two behemoths charging at each other. Deciding to trust in their leader, they began to move back to the tree, and to their shock, they were being ignored by the monsters. As the wounded began to finally relax, those still able to stand watched with bated breath for the clash that would decide their fate. 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The whale looked with hate as it viewed its opponent. The mysterious giant had hot steam slowly wafting off its body as it slowly approached the whale, face shadowed. Its own blood was splattered around it, staining the torn battlefield red, and as the blood turned to steam, it created an aura of mystery as it funneled around the beast. Enraged by the ineffectiveness if it’s attacks, the whale cried out as it began to fly towards the beast at great speeds, its horn aimed to penetrate the head. The eyes of those observing the fight began to widen, as the beast just continued to move, not acknowledging the threat. 

But just as the whale was about to impact, the rogue dodged to the left, and with the whale’s horn passing over its shoulder, the beast a massive punch to the face of the monster, driving it into the ground. The whale practically bounced off the ground with how hard it was hit, and before it could even react, the rogue was back on it, tearing at any piece of exposed flesh with its sharpened fingers. The whale began to funnel fog into its mouth, preparing another shot. But as it turned to fire at the beast, its horn was grabbed and was used to slam its face back into the ground, cutting off the shot. With a roar, the rogue slammed its foot down on the base of the horn, causing the whale to cry out in pain as a snap reverberated across the battlefield. The beast stood on the head of the whale and with primal rage, began to stomp down upon its skull. The whale cried in anguish as its skull was being crushed, blood and bone fragments flying through the air with every impact. 

Those watching were filled with terror as they saw the brutality inflicted upon the whale, and some even turned away, tears in their eyes as they heard its cries for help. Despite it being their enemy, they couldn’t help but feel pity for the ancient mabeast as it was beaten to death. With one final stomp, the beast was dead, it's corpse mutilated and bloodied. The beast stood atop the corpse, heaving in large amounts of air as heavy waves of steam emanated from its body. 

Observers watched in shock, that slowly turned to joy as they realized what had just happened. The White Whale had been defeated! They made it! However, their joy turned to dread as one of the arms of the beast was blown off. Their gaze whipped to the source if the attack only for their blood to freeze in their veins. The final White Whale, which they had forgotten, was diving at the rouge with fog collecting in its gaping maw. It fired, but the beast couldn’t dodge fast enough, and had its arm severed. Eyes widened in horror as it became apparent that the beast was out of energy as its legs could barely support it. As the whale was about to fire another shot, suddenly, the Whale’s remaining eye burst in a shower of blood, knocking the shot off course. A chain dragged the spike-covered ball back into the hands of the blue-haired maid who launched it. With eyes burning full of hatred and her horn flowing with power, Rem stepped forward as she began to spin the formidable weapon. 

“I’m sorry Subaru,” Rem began in a trembling voice. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. But, I will avenge you.” She stated as she launched herself at the beast with a primal cry of anguish, intent on killing the thing that caused her so much grief. 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Earlier... 

“This may be the end for us. But if it may, I’m happy for it to be you that I stand beside.”

“Wilhelm-san, while I appreciate the sentiment, now’s not the time. We will come out victorious.” Crusch said to Wilhelm as they watched in muted fear as they saw the descent of the remaining White Whale. Behind them, healers rushed around to the overflowing amount of patients. The pitiful amount of able-bodied warriors sharpened their weapons or checked their gear in haste, glancing back at the fight every now and then. Crusch developed a grimace. “We might come out victorious.” She amended. 

Wilhelm spared a glance at Crusch, and saw her trembling legs about to buckle. “While your determination runs strong, your body can’t take much more of this.” He said reassuringly. “You can rest for now, I’ll keep an eye on the battle.” 

Crusch shook her head. “What’s important now is reassuring the soldiers. To see that their great commander was on the edge of collapse would get rid of whatever morale we had left.” She sighed. “I do see what you mean though,” She began, looking out to see the rogue on the edge of collapse. “If that thing falls here, we will stand no chance. We can't even muster the forces to go assist it for God’s sake.” She cast a sad look over her soldiers. “Maybe Rem could continue but...”

Noticing Crusch trail off, Wilhelm turned to look at her, who was now scanning the crowd with growing concern. “Crusch-sama, what's wrong?”

“Wilhelm-san, where’s Rem?” Wilhelm’s eyes widened as he heard this and began to scan the encampment, looking for her signature blue hair. 

However, hearing the whale cry out once more in pain caused the two of them to whip back around, only to be met by a shocking sight. 

“Rem?!”

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Present... 

Rem launched towards the flailing mabeast like a bullet shot from a gun, morningstar swirling around her like a typhoon. She knocked the whale back, hitting it on the jaw, and breaking the bone. The victory was brief as the whale, with a general tell of her location, whipped its tail around and smacked Rem into the ground. Her cries of pain alerted the whale to her presence and it began to charge her, intent on finishing the battle. 

Rem looked at the incoming whale with muted fear. She didn’t know what to do, she was batted around like nothing more than a toy. While she may have taken out its eye, she would pay with it for her life. She began to cry, tears dripping down her cheeks, knowing that she had failed to even take down the beast that took her love away from her. She thought of him, knowing that he must think her a failure, despite his kind words. She began to remember him, his laugh, his smile, his kindness. In this moment, her eyes shot open as she remembered what he had spent his last breath telling her.

FIGHT

This reverberated through her as she slowly got to her feet, tears gone as she looked on with a fire lit in her eyes. She thanked Subaru, and told him that no matter what, until her last breath, she would never give up, she would fight. As this set in her soul, she let out a cry as she winded up to swing... before being knocked off her feet as the rogue ran past. 

It was running, not in the disciplined strides of before, but at a frantic pace racing towards the whale. One of its arms had regenerated, and clutched in its fist, was the horn of the White Whale it had killed earlier. The Whale opened its mouth in a roar as the rogue raised its fist, and slammed down on the head of the whale with all of its might. A sick squelching noise was heard as the horn was pushed down into the skull of the whale, by both the power of the rogue pushing down and the momentum of the whale pushing it into the spike. The spike rammed through its eye and buried deep in the earth, pinning the whale there. The whale slumped against the ground, dead. As the whale died, the corpse of the first two whales faded like mirages, as if they never existed. The rogue let out a thundering roar that echoed throughout the plains, as if declaring its victory to all those who listened. 

Rem watched this with shock on her face. She stood and watched everything unfold. She was frozen in shock at the sheer power demonstrated by the beast, and was knocked out of her stupor by the subsequent roar that caused her to cover her ears in pain. Now, she looked upon the beast, only to see it begin to collapse forward with an earthshaking thud. Steam began to waft off its scarred form, as something began to open up on the nape of its neck. Rem immediately took a battle stance, ready to kill anything that could be a threat. She also noted that there was no bruising on the back side of the beast, however there was a small line shaped scar in its back, below the shoulder blades. As she approached, she saw a figure emerging from the opening, and as the steam began to dissipate, she dropped her weapon and her eyes began to fill with tears. She rushed forwards, and grabbed the unconscious figure in a tear-filled grip as she held him close to hear his heartbeat. As she heard the steady beat of his heart, she began to cry, loud sobs as she held her beloved close. 

As the remaining warriors rode in, with Ricardo at the head, they could only look on in shock. Because held in Rem’s arms, was thought to be dead, Natsuki Subaru. None were more shocked than Ricardo, as he looked at Subaru’s arm in shock, as the arm that he had seen bitten off, was back as if it never left. 

The remaining soldiers at the tree began to cry out in joy and relief, they would be fine and the battle was won. At this Crusch finally slumped to the ground, laughing out in joy at the absurdity of the situation. Wilhelm watched the entire scene with a smile on his face. 

And so the sun rose on that day, bringing victory with its radiant rays, but also waves of confusion as one question was prevalent. What was that, and what does it mean for the future?

OMAKE: IF SUBARU HAD THE COLOSSAL TITAN

(These scenes are not canon for Paths of Power, and anything implied or referenced here is just for comedy and none of them reflect what will actually be taking place)

A flash of light lit up the sky, but to the confusion of everyone it just kept growing larger. 

Rem looked at it with a gaze that screamed, ‘Do it bitch, I dare you.’

Crusch looked at it with her eye twitching, ‘I swear to GOD why can’t ANYTHING go to plan.’

Felix looked up at it and said out loud, “Well, guess I’ll die”

And then a massive explosion rang out and everyone fucking died.

Meanwhile...

A figure repeatedly bashed his head against a massive, vibrant white tree while another, taller figure looked on from behind him in embarrassment. 

“You had one job, ONE FUCKING JOB. DON’T FUCKING INTERFERE, and you did WHAT!”

The second figure bashfully rubbed the back of his head, “Umm... oops?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so here we go! Chapter 2! I just want to say thanks here for all the positive responses I've gotten for this story. I can't answer all questions, but I do want to make a few things clear. First, I'm not messing with ships. At all. I have no clue how to write them and I'll try, but it'll be a while before it's something I'm comfortable with. Second, I plan on writing this up to the end of season 2. I am reading the light novels, but I write best with visuals to work off of. And finally, I'm just doing this for fun. This is my first fanfic, not counting Titanic Resolve, which was basically the test run. Don't expect anything great. So, until next time!
> 
> -Branos


	3. What Just Happened?

The advance party shifted on their mounts awkwardly as they watched Rem continue to cry her heart out into Subaru's tattered jacket. After they got over their shock, they had tried to signal Rem to come down but she was too focused on Subaru. This continued a few more minutes before Ricardo, the bravest of the group, tried to approach.

"Rem? Rem? Could you uhh…" He trailed off as Rem began to growl as she clutched Subaru closer, as if possessively. He decided that he should probably wait for her to calm down, as she was running on instinct at that point. And so he waited for another minute before Rem's horn finally faded and she seemed to register her surroundings. As she looked around and saw all of her observers watching the intimate moment, her face exploded into a blush as she wordlessly picked up Subaru and mounted one of the extra Ligers. "Good riddance," Ricardo muttered as he mounted his own Liger and the group began to ride back to the tree. He glanced back at Subaru and took notice of the line-shaped marks around his face that seemed to show where he was connected to that monster. He shivered as he remembered the brutal encounter, the inhuman roars still echoing in his skull, a constant reminder of what had occurred. 'Natsuki Subaru … just what are you?' With that, he turned back to the encampment, determined to get answers.

Oblivious to all of the fearful glances being thrown their way, Rem looked at Subaru in concern and confusion. She had no idea what that abomination was, but it was the reason they were all alive. Her chest hurt as she thought about why he didn't tell her about this. Was he scared? Did he not even know? The final option, although going unsaid, bounced around in her head repeating in a rising crescendo. Did he not trust me? She gripped his hand hard. Rem swore that she would find answers, and be by her Subaru's side every step of the way.

With those final thoughts, the group finally re-entered the camp. With more questions than answers for what just happened.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Crusch … was having a day. One of those days where you wake up and know that something is going to happen. However, she had dismissed this for battle jitters beforehand and was now staring blankly into the abyss, wondering just why her. Yes, they had definitely defeated the White Whale, but not without severe casualties and help from an unknown entity. She had many conflicting emotions over the rogue monster that near-single handedly took down the White Whale, a centuries-old calamity. The most prominent of these was by far confusion. She had no idea what to even classify it as; there had never been a beast described to be anything like it, only folktales from Kararagi spoke of anything of the sort. She had no idea where the thing came from - It had just appeared from thin air! She shivered as she imagined the havoc that could cause in cities; massive beasts of insane strength that could appear in the blink of an eye. She internally knew that it would likely take immense power to take one down, which would take too long to gather. But by far, the most confusing thing that had happened was that the beast helped them. Crusch frowned as she surveyed the torn battlefield. Through all of recorded history, there had never been a case of a monster helping humans before. Sure, monsters have fought other monsters, but it was never to protect people.

Before she could continue down that train of thought, a voice interrupted her mental ramblings.

"Crusch-sama, the advance party is back, and I think you really need to see this," Wilhelm said in a rushed voice as he ran up to the green-haired warrior.

"Wilhelm..." Crusch began in a tired tone. "I have had a really long day, and I still have to organize our forces for the raid against the cult, I don't have time right now." Her attempts to brush him off failed completely as he pleaded once more.

"Crusch-sama, I feel that at the moment this would take priority-"

Wilhelm was interrupted by an indignant shout from Crusch. "Does it somehow take precedence over our operation for the Witch's Cult?! We still made an oath to help, but now with Subaru dead and gone, we have next to no knowledge about the situation!" Crusch's face was twisted into one of rage. "We would have little trouble with it under normal circumstances…" She waved her hand and gestured to their ragged camp, "But these are not normal circumstances!" She finished her rant and looked back on Wilhelm, only to be surprised to see his face adorned in a small smile. "Well, tell me! What's so funny about this?!"

Wilhelm chuckled, despite the situation. "Maybe if you looked over there," He said pointing his hand somewhere behind Crusch. "You might see that the situation is not so hopeless after all."

Crusch frowned at him in confusion and turned around, only to have her eyes blown open in shock. Because sitting amongst the wounded, was thought to be dead Natsuki Subaru being held in Rem's arms as Felix inspected him. Her confusion only grew after she saw the torn state of his clothes and the strange marks on his body. "How…" She trailed off, shock adorning her features.

Wilhelm sighed. "They say that he emerged from the neck of the rogue monster after it fell. He still hasn't woken up but...I think that he was the monster." Seeing Crusch's contort into one of unbelieving bewilderment, he continued. "Ricardo said that the whale the beast emerged from was the same one that swallowed him. It would explain where the beast came from, but it also asks the question, just what is Natsuki Subaru?"

"Well, I don't believe he's evil if that's what you're insinuating! But nonetheless…" Crusch began. "Power that allows one to transform into a beast? A beast that could take down something as powerful as the White Whale? It's completely unheard of, but yet it's the best explanation we've got." With a sigh, Crusch began to move down towards the wounded. "We're not going to get answers just standing here, so let's go ask." Her sudden movement and blunt response made Wilhelm sweatdrop.

"Maybe we hang off on the questioning until he wakes up, but we should decide what to do with him." Crusch paused and turned her head to look back at him.

"What do you mean by that?" She asked in a low, dangerous tone.

Wilhelm, unfazed by this, responded calmly. "Imagine if he could use that power at will. Why didn't he use it earlier? You saw the power it held, what if he was fooling us along? Granted, I don't believe the boy to be evil, but he does pose a threat. That is a fact."

Crusch sighed and continued to walk. "While you are right, I think we should wait until he wakes up before we make any decisions. However...I do think we should move him away from the rest of the camp."

She saw the looks being sent Subaru's way. While he did save them while in that form, a human that could become a monster was unheard of, but a monster in disguise was not. People flinched whenever he moved as if that small motion could hurt them. She saw Rem meeting these looks with a menacing glare as if threatening anyone who thought they could hurt him. His head was lying in her lap as she was stroking his hair, a look of contentedness on his face as Rem gently laced her fingers through his hair. Felix stood up from where he had been inspecting Subaru and said a few words to Rem before seeing Crusch and Wilhelm and heading over to them.

"How are they doing?" Crusch asked in a worried tone.

Felix sighed, his usual cheeriness muted by his exhaustion. "As of now, Rem is somehow in good condition, but she is still a little tired." He looked back at Subaru, anticipating their next question. "Subaru is in absolutely peak condition. I could find no scars or marks on him, and the lines on his face are slowly fading. His arm seems to be in perfect condition, despite both Rem and Ricardo both seeing it bitten off by the whale." He sighed. "As it is...Natsuki Subaru should not be alive."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Away from the masses, an empty cart was being used as a makeshift meeting room. In it, the atmosphere was tense as no one spoke, casting uneasy glances around.

Finally Mimi, the representative for Anastasia, impatiently broke the silence. "So why are we here again? I get that he turned into a beast and all, but he did protect us!" She huffed. "I still think I should be with my brother right now."

"I'm not sure, it's almost like some here don't trust Subaru-kun. Despite the fact that none of us here would be standing without him." Rem responded coldly, Subaru's hand still clutched firmly in her own.

Crusch sighed. "It's not that we don't trust him, we all do owe him our lives, but…why didn't he reveal this sooner? We could have defeated the Whale with next to no casualties if he had gotten involved. Hell, we might not have even needed to get involved in the first place!"

Crusch was breathing heavily after her outburst while everyone looked on in shock. Never once had they seen the green-haired candidate lose her cool, not even in front of the White Whale did she waver. An awkward silence filled the carriage, with only the lingering sounds of the army reaching them.

Wilhelm coughed into his fist, drawing attention to him. "Perhaps what Crusch-sama is trying to say is why would he hide this? This power could have come in useful earlier in the battle."

The others seemed pacified by this and began to look at each other, unsure of what to do next. However, one was looking down on Subaru with a calm face.

"Maybe...Subaru didn't even know of this power." Rem said with a soft voice.

"Rem, what are you talking about?" Questioned Crusch.

"Just think about it! He has done everything to protect us! He was using himself as the bait just so we could have a chance at defeating that damn beast! Why would he be hiding this from us!" Rem's exclamations quieted everyone. But her face soon grew somber. "And besides…" Rem looked at Subaru in concern, "He has a new scent on him."

Wilhelm and Mimi's eyes widened as they understood the implications of that statement. Crusch looked around and saw the shocked expressions on her comrades' faces.

"So? He had been swallowed by the White Whale, so it would make sense for him to smell like it." Crusch said, not understanding the importance of Rem's words.

Rem shook her head. "The miasma of the Witch has a very distinct odor, but this is something I've never smelled before. It's very powerful and also...very ancient, thousands of years old at least."

Jaws dropped at this revelation. Most recorded history had been eliminated by the Witch, and for this power to precede even the Witch...it was frightening.

Wilhelm said quietly, "So this is why there are no records of power like this, it was likely wiped out by the Witch. But that also raises the question...why did it reappear now, so many centuries later…"

No one could answer him. As all eyes were on Subaru, an unsaid question sounded through the cart.

'Just what are you, Natsuki Subaru?'

Birds flying over an open sky, a large red hand dominating the background. An explosion. A house crushed by rubble. A gaping maw closing, blood flying through the air. A boulder being slammed into a large structure. Massive beasts in a stampede, a scream. A gargantuan being crawling out of a crystalline cave. Buildings ravaged by debris. A stage overrun with corpses. A massive quaking. A circular mountain, with a fleet of blimps flying overhead. Everything going white with a massive explosion.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH"

Subaru's eyes shot open as he lurched upward with a scream. He looked around in a frenzy, only to see Rem with a panicked expression, Wilhelm watching him with what looked like caution, Crusch had her hand on her sword as she looked at him in suspicion, and Mimi who was beaming at him in a wide smile.

Rem, seeing Subaru scream in terror, grabbed on to him. "Subaru-kun! Calm down, it's only us!" She shouted in panic.

Slowly, Subaru's erratic motions ceased as he grabbed his chest and took in deep breaths, looking around in confusion. Suddenly, his eyes went wide as he turned to Rem in alarm. "Rem, what happened to the whale? Is everyone ok!?"

Subaru's exclamations fell onto confused ears.

"Subaru." Crusch started in a slow voice. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Eyes widened as they turned to Subaru, who was clutching his head with one hand. "The last thing I remember was…being hit by the whale and landing on the ground. Then I saw..." Subaru's eyes began to fill with tears as his breathing picked up. Rem noticed this and hugged him while rubbing circles into his back. His breaths began to calm down after a minute or two and slowly detached himself from Rem.

"What...did you see?" Wilhelm asked cautiously.

Subaru took a deep breath. "I think I saw visions...of another time. It was like flashes of memories, and they were too vivid to be dreams. There were monsters there, massive humanoid creatures that had tremendous strength. There was so much destruction...so much death, and all of it led back to the creatures. I couldn't hear anything from them, but I could have sworn that I heard a voice say that I had to protect them, whatever it took, and to just keep moving forward. I know it sounds crazy, but that's what I saw, you have to believe me!" His ramblings went unanswered as he slowly opened his eyes to gauge their reactions, but was silenced by their expressions.

Everyone looked at Subaru with wide, fearful expressions. He quickly grew confused at this reaction and turned to see that even Rem had gone pale at this.

"What's up guys, it was probably just a dream anyways…" Subaru trailed off as Wilhelm coughed into his fist.

"Subaru, I think you should look behind you," Wilhelm said in a quiet tone.

Confused, Subaru slowly turned, only for his body to go rigid in terror as his blood ran like ice through his veins.

There, just a few dozen meters from the cart, was the steaming corpse of the rogue, its scarred figure still menacing even in death. Subaru's eyes widened even more as he looked over only to see the brutalized body of the Whale, its blood staining the wartorn ground beneath it. His gaze wandered across the steam-covered battlefield, seeing torn bodies scattered throughout, blood and viscera standing out like tumors on the land.

Subaru's shaking pupils were just dots on a field of white as he fell backward, as his entire body shook. "How is that...thing here? How did you defeat it?!" Subaru shouted in a panic to the others in the cart, only to see them watching with shocked gazes.

Rem spoke softly, "It had suddenly appeared from one of the White Whales, and it was the one to defeat the Whale. It had collapsed afterward due to exhaustion, but..." Rem's voice began to tremble, "When I got close, I saw you emerge from its neck. So answer me honestly Subaru-kun...was that monster you?"

Subaru.exe is not working, please try again later

"Subaru-kun?"

Subaru.exe is not working, please try again later

"Is he alright Wilhelm?"

"I just believe him to be in shock, nothing serious."

"THAT'S NOTHING SERIOUS!?"

Subaru.exe is rebooting, please do not turn off

And with that, Subaru's eyes rolled back into his head as he began to sag, falling into the realm of unconsciousness once more.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A gentle rocking and low rumbling are what greeted Subaru as he began to return to consciousness, streams of thought merging together as the fog around his mind began to clear. He shifted around where he lay, absentmindedly noticing the uncomfortable surface he was pressed down on. Suddenly his eyes shot open as his memories began to flow, remembering what had happened before he blacked out. He swiftly moved from his position on the hard, wood floor to look around, and through his blurry vision, he could see the outlines of several people around him. His vision cleared and he saw those in the cart with him. Rem was resting, her body leaning on the side of the cart as her hand was outstretched towards him. Wilhelm was sitting, back rigid with soft breathing and muscles tense, as if he was ready for a fight at any moment. Crusch was looking out through the night in front of him, dark green hair flowing through the air around her as the moonlight shone across her face. He continued to look around, noticing that they were traveling in a caravan across the plains, with a forest approaching on the brightening horizon. However, his shuffling had caused Crusch to turn and look, only for her eyes to widen in shock.

"Subaru?!" She exclaimed in shock.

This woke up the other two passengers, who hearing the shocked yell grabbed their weapons as their eyes shot open, only for them to drop them as they saw the reason for the shock. Subaru didn't have time to process this, as Rem immediately grabbed him in a bone-crushing hug.

"R-rem you're crushing me." Subaru squeaked out from within the hug, which immediately caused Rem to let go with a concerned look on his face. He drew in deep breaths of air as he was released while looking around. "What happened after I went out?" He asked in a breathless voice, still recovering from the jaws of death.

Crusch looked at him in concern. "After you went out, we had Felix check over you to make sure you were alright. He said that you would be fine and just needed time. About an hour later, all of our able-bodied troops were about to head out before more reinforcements came."

"Reinforcements? What kind of reinforcements!?" Subaru all but shouted out in surprise.

Crusch waved her hand. "About 20 more of Anastasia's soldiers to help against the Witch's Cult. But anyways…" She began with a steely look in her eyes, "Why did you pass out earlier? Just what are you, Natsuki Subaru?"

Subaru had a confused and hurt look on his face. "What do you mean, I'm human! Are you really doubting that?!" He shouted.

"Subaru…" Wilhelm began, "See this from our perspectives. You emerge from an immensely powerful monster after being presumed dead, your limbs are somehow regrown, and you smell of something more ancient than history." With every word, Subaru's eyes grew wider. "You have an ability that no one's ever heard of before, that appeared from seemingly nowhere. You are immensely suspicious given the circumstances. Just answer me this honestly and I'll believe you...Subaru, are you working against humanity?"

At this everyone watched with bated breath as Subaru's face contorted into a serious expression.

"I-I...want to save everyone, I would give my all for humanity, and I will be able to help." He spoke with a determined gaze, glaring at everyone else in the cart as his eyes were nearly glowing with an aura of power.

Both Rem and Wilhelm looked at Crusch after hearing this, and they breathed sighs of relief as they saw her smile and nod her head.

"Sorry about the questions, we just needed to make sure," Crusch said in a placating voice.

Subaru sighed. "Yeah, it only makes sense. You just want to make sure the people are safe." He gave a small smile to everyone in the cart with him.

"So Subaru-kun...do you really not know anything about what happened to you?" Rem asked in a worried tone as she sat next to him.

Subaru gave a small chuckle. "Nope, I have no clue what happened, but if I can use it to help people, then that's what I'll do." His reassuring words calmed the others as they began to smile. However, Subaru looked down at his hand and frowned. He really had no idea what that power was, but he had a feeling it was related to the man that spoke to him in his dreams. He clenched his fist. He would use this power for good, and he would figure out the secrets behind it. He was still confused about it, why would he of all people have this ancient power? As he looked out on the rising sun, surrounded by his friends, he knew that he could use this power to help them and that he was content with it. And so the sun rose on a new day, its rays bringing new life and joy, but also bringing forth the inevitable darkness, rearing its ugly head to strike fear and despair into the hearts of our heroes. Will they face it with unwavering resolve, or be consumed by it?

Chapter 4: Undying Threat


End file.
